Personally, I really liked Mercy Kill and I loved how Voort was given the main role. I also liked how there was a mix of humor and fun action with some deep drama._________________
"I believe toys resonate with us as humans, we can hold them them, it's tactile, real! They are totems for our extended beliefs and imaginations. A fetish for ideas that hold as much interest and passion as old religious relics for some. We display them in our homes. They show who we are. They are signals for similar thinking people. A way we connect with each other...and I guess thats why I do toys. That connection." -Ashley Wood

Posted: Tue Aug 07, 2012 12:24 pm

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Darth_HenningMaster

Joined: 12 Apr 2011Posts: 577Location: Canada

Picked this up yesterday. Came out a little early (YES!!)

So far I'm on about page 90. Excellent so far. Definitely vintage Allston with the humor intersperced with realistic and awesome military action.

From the first chapter, there's not really much in the way of respite at any point. Which is good. You get right into the action.

There's one character I'm waiting to have appear who hasn't shown up yet, but I'm hoping it will be soon.

The characterization of both the old wraits and the new ones is excellent. Consistent, and believable. Also a great way to introduce some new characters to the EU who have had little to no page time before.

I'm also glad to see how he's handling Scut (the vong character).

Posted: Tue Aug 07, 2012 12:42 pm

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Mara Jade SkywalkerAdministrator

Joined: 15 Feb 2008Posts: 6205Location: Beyond Shadows

There's a Vong character?! How did I not know this? _________________"It's not about the legacy you leave, it's about the life you live." ~Mara Jade Skywalker

Posted: Tue Aug 07, 2012 1:28 pm

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Darth SkuldrenModerator

Joined: 04 Feb 2008Posts: 6844Location: Missouri

@Mara: You didn't know? Well now you have something to look forward to. _________________
"I believe toys resonate with us as humans, we can hold them them, it's tactile, real! They are totems for our extended beliefs and imaginations. A fetish for ideas that hold as much interest and passion as old religious relics for some. We display them in our homes. They show who we are. They are signals for similar thinking people. A way we connect with each other...and I guess thats why I do toys. That connection." -Ashley Wood

Posted: Tue Aug 07, 2012 2:45 pm

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Mara Jade SkywalkerAdministrator

Joined: 15 Feb 2008Posts: 6205Location: Beyond Shadows

I am suddenly super excited for this. Forget all my reservations, I think I'm stopping by Books-A-Million tonight. _________________"It's not about the legacy you leave, it's about the life you live." ~Mara Jade Skywalker

Posted: Wed Aug 08, 2012 9:26 pm

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Darth_HenningMaster

Joined: 12 Apr 2011Posts: 577Location: Canada

Now past 200 pages (out of 369).

I am disappointed by only one thing.

Click here to see the hidden message (It might contain spoilers)

how small a role Wedge has in this book. I was really hoping to see more of him

Otherwise everything has been excellent and keeps getting better. Probably my favourite Star Wars release in the last couple years.[/spoiler]

I'll be picking up the book this weekend._________________All things die, Anakin Skywalker, even stars burn out.

Those without swords can still die upon them

Posted: Wed Aug 08, 2012 10:56 pm

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Mara Jade SkywalkerAdministrator

Joined: 15 Feb 2008Posts: 6205Location: Beyond Shadows

It's here! I came home to a nice surprise and found it sitting on my pillow. My sister picked it up from the library for me, earlier than expected. Starting this one tomorrow! _________________"It's not about the legacy you leave, it's about the life you live." ~Mara Jade Skywalker

Mercy kill started out more or less right into the action with a mission from the old days, when most of the original team was still together. It really showed who the Wraiths were. Either introducing new readers to them, or refreshing the memories of old readers). This seems unrelated until near the end where the rescued character becomes essential to the mission being conducted. A well-orchestrated bit of forshadowing. Not to mention that the mission itself was perfectly written.

The other two major flashbacks that occurs later when Piggy dozes off really illustrate how the wraiths changed over time. And the last flashback shows what led Piggy to where he currently is in life. It also is an excellent throwback to the feel of the NJO, and illustrates the horror and loss of that war, while only actually using 4 named characters.

Now to the modern Wraiths. How the teams were assembled (as explained by Face near the end), made perfect sense, and allowed a good mix of the old Veterans, and new characters (or ones who have had little page time), each of which had a unique personality, but all of whom could be linked in one way or another back to who the Wraiths used to be. excellently done.

The mission itself fit well with a Wraith mission, and I have few complaints on that point. Without describing it in detail, its the classic mix of brilliant tactical planning, unpredictable massive screw-ups, and a variety of humerous, unpredictable hijinx.

Overall, its hard to find much in the book to complain about. Really there's only four things that bothered me. Two minor and Two major.

Minor

a) 3 spelling mistakes that I noticed that escaped editing. (and not just a missing letter, but the wrong word, or a nonsense word entirely)

b) Wedge's 2 page appearance - if you're putting someone on a 10 character DP, he should really have more page time. especially given that several other major characters (ie, half the wraiths) weren't even mentioned there. Its also a loss for possible humour IMHO. If he was just a nice nod for a brief period, he shouldn't have gotten a DP slot.

Major

c) Almost none of the squadron are actually pilots. Kind of gets away from the original point of the squadron. Hopefully in future books they'll be trained for that, since the purpose was an intelligence squadron that could fly in addition.

d) The ending. Not to say that large parts of it weren't done well, but not officially reinstating Wraith Squadron was illogical, especially now that Face is in charge of intelligence.

Posted: Fri Aug 10, 2012 1:08 pm

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Darth SkuldrenModerator

Joined: 04 Feb 2008Posts: 6844Location: Missouri

Karen Miller's Roll of the Dice short story in Insider serves as a prelude to Mercy Kill with Myri and Wedge action. Did anyone else read that?_________________
"I believe toys resonate with us as humans, we can hold them them, it's tactile, real! They are totems for our extended beliefs and imaginations. A fetish for ideas that hold as much interest and passion as old religious relics for some. We display them in our homes. They show who we are. They are signals for similar thinking people. A way we connect with each other...and I guess thats why I do toys. That connection." -Ashley Wood

Posted: Sat Aug 11, 2012 5:21 pm

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Mara Jade SkywalkerAdministrator

Joined: 15 Feb 2008Posts: 6205Location: Beyond Shadows

I'm a slow reader, and I don't have much time right now. But I'm totally loving what I've read so far! It brings me back in time, to the good old days. First Star Wars book I've been excited to read in awhile. _________________"It's not about the legacy you leave, it's about the life you live." ~Mara Jade Skywalker